Tamping stick



. April 9, 1957 l- D. WESTER TAMPING STICK Filed May 24, 1954 INVENTOR Bxfd.

(/f' A TORNEY United 2,787,933 Patented Apr. 9, 1957 TAMPING STICK Ingvar D. Wester, Iron River, Mich. Application May 24, 1954, Serial No. 431,769 7 Claims. (Cl. 86-21) This invention relates to a novel tamping stick and guide for use in tamping dynamite and other explosives into drilled holes for blasting the formation around the holes, and has for its primary object to provide a tamping stick and guide which is especially adapted for use in tamping explosives into overhead drill holes located at elevations which may not be readily reached by an operator from a standing position on a supporting surface disposed therebeneath.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tamping stick including a guide which is capable of readily supporting an explosive, such as a stick of dynamite, for elevation of the dynamite and for guiding the dynamite into the entrance end of a drilled hole in which the dynamite is to be tamped for blasting.

Still a further object of the invention is to provide an improved tamping stick which is so constructed that no danger of sparking will result through the use thereof in tamping a drilled hole with an explosive.

Various other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafter become more fully apparent from the following description of the drawings, illustrating a presently preferred embodiment thereof, and wherein:

Figure l is an elevation view, partly in section, showin the invention in an operative position;

Figure 2 is a similar view on an enlarged scale taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken substantially along a plane as indicated by the line 3 3 of Figure 2, and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view of the upper portion of a slightly modied form of the tamping head.

Referring more specifically to the drawing, the tamping stick in its entirety and comprising the invention in its preferred form as illustrated in Figures 1 to 3, is designated generally 7. Said tamping stick 7 includes a tamping rod, designated generally S, which may be composed of one, two or more corresponding rod sections, each designated generally 9. The tamping stick 7 also includes a tamping head, designated generally 10, and a guide, designated generally 11.

Each section 9 of the tamping rod S comprises an elongated rod element 12 which may be either solid or hollow. The rod element 12 is provided with an externally threaded end 13 and an opposite end which is externally enlarged, longitudinally recessed and internally threaded to dene a socket 14 which opens outwardly of said last mentioned end. Each rod element 12 is provided with a hard plastic coating 15 completely enclosing the rod element 12 from the outer extremity of its socket end 14 up to but not including its threaded opposite end 13.

The head 1i) is preferably formed of a relatively hard plastic and is of substantially circular cross section and has a substantially flat outer end 16. The head 10 is provided with a tapered opposite inner or rear end 17 which is preferably of frusto-conical shape and which terminates in a substantially ilat rear end portion 18. The head 10 is provided with an elongated recess 19 having an open end opening outwardly of said end 18. An internally threaded sleeve 20 is secured immovably in the inner end of said bore or recess 19 and the threaded bore thereof is of a proper size to threadedly receive the stem 13 of one of the rod sections 9, as seen in Figure 2. When the stem 13 is threadedly engaged in the sleeve 20, a portion of the plastic coated end of the rod element, located adjacent said threaded stem 13, will be disposed in the recess 19 between the sleeve 20 and the end 18 of the head 10. A longitudinal groove 21 is formed in a portion of the head 1t) and has one end opening outwardly of the outer or forward end 16 and its opposite end terminating in and opening outwardly from a part of the tapered head portion 17, as best seen in Figure 2.

rl`he guide and support 11 comprises an elongated sleeve formed of a nonsparking material, preferably rubber which is relatively stiff and rigid. The guide and support 11 is provided with a longitudinally extending bore 22 of circular cross section one end of which opens outwardly of a forward end 23 of the guide and support 11. The opposite end portion 24 of said support is of frustoconical shape and the opposite end of the bore 22, disposed in said portion 24, is likewise of frusto-conical shape to receive the tapered end 17 of the head 10 when said head is disposed in a fully retracted position in the guide 11, as seen in Figures 1 and 2. The remainder of the bore 22 between the frusto-conical portion 24 and the forward end 23 of the guide 11 is of a diameter slightly greater than the diameter of the head 10. The frustoconical guide portion 24 terminates in an end 25 having an opening 26 which aligns with and is of substantially the same diameter as the recess 19 and which has a frictional gripping engagement with the plastic coated portion of the rod element 12 which extends therethrough. The end portion 18 of the head abuts against the guide end 2S around said opening 26 when the head is in its fully retracted position. The wall of the guide 11 is relatively thick and is increased in thickness externally adjacent the forward end of the guide so that the forward end portion 23 is of relatively large external diameter. The frusto-conical guide portion 24 is provided with an opening 27 disposed to register with the end of the groove 21, which opens outwardly of the head portion 17, when said head 10 is in a f-ully retracted position and turned to a predetermined position relatively to the guide 11, as clearly illustrated in Figure 2.

Figure 1 illustrates a portion of a formation to be blasted, designated 28, into which a hole 29 has been drilled upwardly for receiving the blasting explosive, which may be in any suitable form such as sticks of dynamite 30. Assuming that the lower open end of the drilled hole 29 is in a relatively high overhead position, so that it cannot 'oe readily reached by workmen standing therebeneath, the tamping stick 7 is especially well adapted for use in tamping the explosive into the drilled hole. This is accomplished by initially moving the head 10 to a fully retracted position and inserting a stick of dynamite 30 into the bore 22 through the guide end 23. The guide or support 11 is of suicient length to accommodate the head 10 and a major portion of the dynamite stick 30, as illustrated in Figures l and 2. Said guide and support 11 is also sufficiently stiff and rigid to support the stick 39 in an upright position on the forward end of the head 10 and has sufficient frictional gripping engagement with the coated rod portion 12 which extends through the opening 26 thereof for maintaining the support and guide in its position of Figures 1 and 2 relatively to the head 10 and the tamping rod section 9 which projects downwardly from said guide and support. The tamping rod section 9 may be made in various lengths and if one length of said rod is insufficient, so that the head 10 can be elevated sufficiently to tamp a powder stick 30 into the upper end of the drilled hole .29, one or more additional rod sections 9 may be assembled with the rod section, connected to the head 10, by threadedly connecting the stems 13 of the additional rod sections to the socket ends 14 of the rod sections 9, disposed immediately thereabove. The flared upper or forward end 23 of the guide and support 11 is sufficiently large in diameter so that it can engage the bottom surface of the formation 28 around the open lower end of the drilled hole 29and will not enter said hole. The end of the dynamite stick 30 projecting from the guide end 23 will guide said end 23 into its position in engagement with the formation 28, as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2. The guide and support 11 is sufficiently sti and rigid so that an upward thrust can be exerted on the tamping rod 8 for displacing the head 10 of the upper section of said rod upwardly through the guide 11, without collapsing the guide. T hus, the tamping head iii and the explosive stick 30 supported thereon will be guided by the support and guide 11 together with the tamping rod 8 in their upward movement relatively to the guide 11 for displacing the explosive 30 upwardly into the upper end of the hole 29, in the position as illustrated by the uppermost explosive 30 in Figure 1. The additional sticks of explosive are then applied and tamped in the hole 29 in the same manner, after returning the head 10 and tamping rod 8 to their positions of Figures 1 and 2.

It will be noted that no parts of the tamping stick 7, capable of producing a spark, are disposed in an exposed position so that the tamping stick 7 can be used with a maximum of safety. The groove 21 is provided to ac-V commodate a fuse connected to and extending downwardly from a stick of the explosive 30. As seen in Figure 2, such a fuse 31 is shown extending downwardly from the explosive stick 30 supported on the head 10 through the groove 21 and outwardly through the opening 27. It will be readily apparent that the fuse 31 will be carried upwardly by the head 10 with the explosive 30 supported on said head and into the hole 29.

For the purpose of additional safety if considered necessary, the upper portion of the head 10 may be modied as illustrated in Figure 4, wherein the upper portion of a head 10a is shown having an upwardly opening recess 32 in which is seated a portion of a block of rubber 33. The block of rubber 33 has an upper portion 34 covering the upper end of the head 10a and on which the explosive stick is supported, to provide a softer support than is afforded by the upper end of the head 10. The fuse receiving groove or channel 21a extends upwardly through a portion of the rubber insert 33 and opens outwardly of the top portion 34 thereof, to accommodate a fuse in the same manner as illustrated in Figure 2.

Various other modifications and changes are contemplated and may obviously be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A tampingv stick for explosives comprising an elongated rod having a threaded end, an elongated head having a substantially flat forward end and a rear end, said head havingan elongated longitudinally disposed recess opening outwardly of its rear end including an internally threaded inner end portion of reduced diameter relatively to the outer portion of said recess, said end of said rodthreadedly engaging in the threaded inner portion of said recess, an elongated guide and support including a forward end and a rear end, said guide and support having a longitudinally extending bore slidably receiving said head and openoutwardly of the forward end of the guide, the rear end of said guide having an opening constituting the opposite end of said bore of substantially reduced diameter relatively to the first mentioned bore end and through which said rod extends, said rear end of the guide being provided with a wall defining said opening having frictional engagement with said rod sutcient to support the guide on the rod, and said guide being substantially longer than the head for surrounding a substantial portion of an explosive disposed in the forward portion of the guide and supported on the forward end of the head.

2. A tamping stick as in claim l, said head and guide being formed of nonsparking material, and said rod being coated with a nonsparking material from the end thereof remote from its threaded end up to said threaded end, a portion of the coated part of said rod being disposed in the outer part of the head recess.

3. A tamping stick as in claim 2, said head being formed of a harder material than the guide, said guide being formed of rubber and being sufficiently rigid to maintain itself in an extended position to prevent collapsing thereof during sliding movement of the head and rod therethrough.

4. A ramping stick as in daim 3, the wan of einV guide being externally flared and increased in thickness adjacent its forward end, the exterior diameter of the forward end of said guide being substantially greater than the diameter of the bore portion opening outwardly thereof for engagement of said forward end of the guide against a wall surface ofV aformation around a drill hole thereof into which the explosive from said guide is to be tamped by displacement of the head forwardly through the guide.

5. A tamping stick as in claim 1, said head and guide being tapered from adjacent to toward and to theV rear ends thereof, said guide bore including a tapered portion disposed in the tapered portion of the guide in which the tapered end of said head is disposed when the head is in a full'ly retracted position.

6. A tamping stick as in claim 5, said head being provided with a longitudinally extending fuse receiving groove having one end opening through the forward end of the head and an opposite end opening outwardly of a portion of the tapered head part, and the tapered part of said guide having an opening disposed to register with *the last mentioned end of said groove in a fully 4retracted position of the head relatively to the guide.

7. A tamping stick as Yin claim 1, said head being formed of hard plastic and being provided with a recess in its forward part, and a block of rubber anchored in said recess and having a portion disposed therebeyond and constituting the forward end of said head.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 116,565 Corgan July 4, 1871 288,706 Iwan Nov. 20, 1883 337,492 Hadesty Mar. 9, 1896 1,395,792 Bowman Nov. 1, 1921 2,654,285 McGirr Oct. 6, 1953 

